Monday, June 25, 2007

Public Interest Groups Side with TorrentSpy

Now that some time has passed, the extended ramifications of the logfile ruling are coming to light. For example, the EFF has filed a brief with the court to discuss the damage this ruling will cause if upheld.

Hopefully the court will see the damage this "weapon of mass discovery" will create if allowed to stand.

5 comments:

This sounds terrible. I can understand there is a need to calm down the popularity of torrents being used to trade movies, or what not, but they shouldn't do it by destroying everyones right to privacy.

I truly hope that the decision is overturned, this decision has implications far beyond just freedom of speech while on the internet. This decision will affect freedom of the press. If a potential source fears that his or her identification may come out during discovery they may not even go to the press. With that in mind I am shocked that the national news-media has not picked up on this and is following it very carefully.

In addition to my last comment, it occurs to me that this ruling will prevent corporate whistle blowers from coming forward with what they know. I certainly wouldn't come forward if I knew the company I worked for would litigate those logs into light resulting in me losing my job and being sued into bankruptcy.

Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die. ~Dwight D. Eisenhower